Myriad Rivers to the Sea

Li Yu sat on the invisible floor of the administrative space and stared at a small collection of tokens resting in his open palm. The pale blue light from the floating monitors cast long shadows across his hands while the quiet hum of digital energy filled the void. Two weeks had passed since he first stepped into this strange sanctuary and his options for returning home were dwindling rapidly. Jirno possessed no knowledge of dimensional travel and the system itself offered no features for opening rifts back to the Gale Blossom Realm.

He channeled a stream of his Qi into the communication tokens for his family and allies. The tokens glowed with a faint green light before sputtering out and returning to a dull lifeless gray. The connection refused to establish itself no matter how much energy he poured into the intricate arrays carved on the surface.

"Are you certain the system is not blocking outgoing signals, Jirno?" Li Yu asked while turning one of the tokens over in his hand. "These transmission tokens are designed to pierce through standard spatial barriers and reach across realms. They should at least give me a faint reading if the receiver is active."

Jirno floated closer and pulled up a translucent blue screen filled with scrolling text. His ethereal fingers danced across the surface to run a quick diagnostic check on the local environment.

"The system confirms there is no interference on our end, Li Yu," Jirno replied and pointed to a line of green text on his monitor. "The defense grid blocks physical entry but it does not restrict spiritual transmissions or communication arrays. If your tokens are failing, it means the receiving end is either destroyed or located in a place that cannot be reached by normal spatial laws."

Li Yu let out a soft sigh and stored the useless token pieces back into his spatial ring. He did not realize the true nature of his predicament. He was a traveler cast far back into the ancient past so the people holding and the matching tokens themselves did not even exist yet. The arrays were trying to connect to a future timeline that had not been written and the laws of reality simply denied the connection.

"Then I have reached another dead end in this place," Li Yu said while standing up and brushing off his robes. "Sitting in this room will not bring me any closer to my family. I need to leave this space and travel back to the outer continents. Perhaps there are ancient ruins or hidden spatial tears out there that can point me in the right direction."

Jirno lowered his hands and a deep sadness washed over his ethereal features. He had expected this moment to arrive but the reality of losing his only companion still hurt his heart. The past two weeks had been the brightest time in his long and lonely existence. Li Yu was a wonderful guest who provided delicious food and engaging conversation while treating him with respect and warmth like a friend.

The overseer debated with himself whether or not to ask the human to stay just a little longer. He wanted to offer more rare herbs or promise future rewards from his daily points but he knew such requests were selfish. Li Yu was not a prisoner bound to this digital cage. He was a man with a family waiting for him and keeping him away from his loved ones would be a cruel act.

"I understand, Li Yu," Jirno said with a wavering voice. "This is not the place for you and you have important people waiting for your return. I wish you the best of luck on your journey. Please take care of yourself out there."

"I will Jirno," Li Yu smiled and offered a respectful bow. "Keep cultivating your own peace and do not let this system break your spirit. I hope we can share another meal together someday if its fated."

Li Yu turned toward the spot where he first entered the dimension and prepared to gather his void laws to step out of the sanctuary. Just as he began to cycle his energy a familiar pulse echoed through his mind. The connection tied to his Koi Sanctuary flared to life and a wave of robust vitality washed over his senses.

Heiyuan had finally finished digesting the large feast in its stomach. The black serpent awoke within the inner space and the volume of energy pushed his cultivation base across a major threshold. The beast shattered his previous limits and successfully broke through to the Core Formation stage. It was an incredibly fast progression for a beast of his lineage and the rapid growth spoke volumes about the quality of the resources he had consumed.

'Li Yu, I am awake,' Heiyuan sent a deep rumbling thought across their mental link. 'My body feels strong and my hunger has returned. I found a few corpses waiting for me in the grass. The crimson scaled one tasted very rich. Are we still fighting those outside? Take me out so I can stretch my coils and hunt.'

Li Yu paused his departure and smiled at the familiar bloodthirsty tone of his companion. He opened a spatial tear with a wave of his hand and allowed the beast to exit the inner world.

Heiyuan emerged from the tear and his physical form had grown significantly during his slumber. Thick dark scales shimmered with a metallic luster under the blue light of the monitors and his unblinking eyes glowed with a predatory crimson hue. He slithered onto the invisible floor and let out a low hiss while tasting the air with his forked tongue.

The moment the dark serpent materialized in the room, the surrounding monitors flashed with a sudden and aggressive red warning light. A loud chime echoed through the void and a golden text box expanded directly in front of Jirno. The ethereal overseer jumped back in surprise and read the urgent message provided by his artifact.

'Alert. Special entity detected within administrative boundaries. Hero type unit recognized. Potential for extreme growth confirmed.'

"Welcome back, Heiyuan," Li Yu said while resting a hand on the cool scales of the serpent. "You slept for quite a while. Your progression is coming along very nicely."

Heiyuan ignored the compliment and looked around the strange dark void filled with floating screens. The environment lacked the smell of dirt or rain and the presence of the ethereal dragon kin confused his senses.

'Where are we, Li Yu?' Heiyuan asked through their bond while coiling his long body into a defensive posture. 'This does not look like the stormy plateau. What is this strange spirit floating near those glowing squares? Does it taste good?'

"Do not eat him," Li Yu chuckled and patted the serpent on the head. "We are in the central continent right now. This place is called the Dragon Core as you know and this is Jirno. He is the overseer of this land and he is a new friend."

Heiyuan tilted his head and his crimson eyes narrowed. 'The Dragon Core? The land of the invincible tyrants? Where are the armies of elite warriors? Where are the rivers of blood and the piles of hoarded treasure?'

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"That is the irony of this place," Li Yu explained openly. "There are no armies and there are no tyrants. The legends we heard on the outer continents are a manufactured illusion from a misunderstanding. The dragon kin living here are peaceful farmers who trade rare herbs for relatively common things to the outside world. They do not fight and they do not conquer."

'Then why do intruders die when they come here?' Heiyuan hissed with confusion. 'Who killed all those travelers if the dragons are weak?'

"You can think of it as an automated defense array that kills them," Li Yu continued his explanation to the stunned serpent. "Jirno possesses a strange artifact called a system that controls this entire continent. The artifact set up lethal storms and spatial traps to protect the borders because the local population refused to fight. The system also occasionally spawns warriors like Vaxx from a random drawing and sends them out to gather resources. The entire reputation of this continent is based on automated defenses and a few rogue pawns acting on their own."

Heiyuan processed the information and let out a sound that resembled a scoff. The world devouring serpent found the truth incredibly disappointing. The history of the realm was built on a huge misunderstanding and the fearsome predators of the central lands were just sheep hiding behind a mechanical fence.

While Li Yu brought his companion up to speed, Jirno was busy reading a rapid stream of text scrolling across his main monitor. The system was highly active and analyzing the new arrival with intense scrutiny.

'Host must exercise caution,' the system text read. 'The human entity known as Li Yu possesses an internal spatial dimension that evades my detection parameters. The sudden appearance of the Hero type unit confirms the anomaly holds capabilities beyond standard understanding. He is dangerous.'

Jirno frowned and typed a quick response on the glowing interface. 'He is not dangerous to me. He is my friend and he gave me food. Stop treating him like an enemy.'

The system paused for a moment before generating a new prompt. 'Understood. Focusing analysis on the Hero type unit. The serpent possesses a dormant devouring bloodline of immense value. Generating specialized progression trials.'

Jirno looked away from the screen and directed his attention toward Li Yu. "Who is your companion, Li Yu? The system is reacting to his presence with a lot of excitement. It calls him a Hero type unit."

"His name is Heiyuan," Li Yu introduced the serpent while keeping his hand resting on the dark scales. "He is a beast that wants to devour the world. I found him by chance at a street vendor on one of the outer continents. He was just a small snake back then but he grew stronger by consuming pills and physical bodies."

"He is very impressive," Jirno said and pulled up a golden prompt on his screen. "The system just generated a special alert for him. It says Heiyuan can undergo a unique test to further strengthen his bloodline and accelerate his growth. It would help him immensely."

Heiyuan perked up at the mention of growing stronger and his crimson eyes locked onto the ethereal dragon kin. 'Ask him what kind of test it is, Li Yu. I will devour any trial if it brings me more power.'

Li Yu did not share the immediate enthusiasm of his companion. He remembered the strict rules and demanding nature of the system. He narrowed his eyes and looked at Jirno with a cautious gaze.

"What is the catch, Jirno?" Li Yu asked and his tone became very serious. "If he takes this test will he become bound to your system? Will he become your underling and be forced to follow your commands like Vaxx?"

Jirno shook his head quickly and raised his hands to show he meant no harm. "I am honestly not sure, Li Yu. Let me check the exact terms with the system right now. I would never trick you or your companion into servitude."

The overseer tapped the screen and initiated a query with the artifact. The system processed the request and displayed the rules of the generated trial in clear text for both of them to read.

"The system says he will not be bound to me unless he specifically chooses to accept a subordinate contract later," Jirno read the text aloud to ensure there were no misunderstandings. "Heiyuan is marked as a special independent being. The system recognizes his potential and offers this trial simply because it desires to see a Hero type of a similar bloodline reach its peak. He will grow much faster by completing the system challenges but he remains free to leave whenever he wishes."

Li Yu pondered the offer and weighed the potential risks against the benefits. He knew artifacts like this often possessed hidden agendas and the idea of letting an unknown entity alter his companion's bloodline made him uncomfortable. However, he also knew Heiyuan wanted to do everything and anything in order to get stronger as well.

He shifted his gaze and focused on Jirno. He read the karma radiating from the ethereal spirit and found only gentle and honest intentions. Jirno did what he needed to do to satisfy the demands of his artifact but the man himself harbored no cruel karma or malicious intent. The overseer was most likely genuinely trying to help them.

"The decision is yours, Heiyuan," Li Yu said while looking down at the dark serpent. "The path to power always carries some risk. Do you want to undertake this trial or do you want to continue progressing through natural consumption?"

Heiyuan did not hesitate for a single second. The desire to grow strong and devour the world seemed to be woven into the very fabric of his soul. He wanted to reach the peak of the cosmos and he did not care if the path involved a strange glowing artifact.

'I want to take the test, Li yu,' Heiyuan hissed firmly. 'Anything that helps me gain power is fine with me. I am not afraid of a challenge. If I should fall early, it simply means I was not fated to swallow the cosmos.'

"He accepts the offer, Jirno," Li Yu announced and took a step back to give the serpent some room.

Jirno smiled brightly and pressed a glowing golden button on his main monitor. "Excellent. The system is generating the trial parameters now. It says it will send his consciousness into a simulated world to test his instincts and growth potential."

The dark void around them shifted and a large rectangular screen materialized directly in front of Heiyuan. The screen displayed a vibrant digital landscape constructed from bright green blocks and glowing red fruits. It looked like a modern game interface and cheerful music began to play from unseen speakers.

A beam of soft light shot out from the monitor and struck Heiyuan between his crimson eyes. The serpent's body went slack as his consciousness was pulled directly into the digital simulation. He dropped to the floor and entered a deep meditative trance while his mind navigated the new challenge.

The large screen above him shifted to display his progress. It showed a pixelated version of a black snake navigating the green grid and hunting for the glowing red fruits.

"We can watch his journey from here," Jirno said while summoning his hard light chair and taking a seat. "The system says the trial might take some time to complete depending on his skill level."

Li Yu looked at the screen and then looked at the exit he had been preparing to use just a few moments ago. He realized the search for a way home could wait a little longer. He was not going to leave his companion alone and vulnerable while his mind was trapped inside a system trial.

"It looks like I will be staying a bit longer, Jirno. I hope you do not mind the intrusion." Li Yu said and pulled his own chair from his spatial ring. He sat down next to the overseer and crossed his legs comfortably once more.

Jirno beamed with undeniable happiness. He did not have to say goodbye to his friend just yet. "I am very glad you are staying, Li Yu. We can watch his progress together and I can tell you more stories about the early days of this realm."

"That sounds perfect," Li Yu agreed and pulled his iron stove back out from his storage ring. "I suppose I should start preparing some snacks for us while we watch."

The two friends settled into their chairs and enjoyed each other's company while the digital void hummed with quiet activity. The dark serpent chased his digital prey across the glowing grid and a new chapter of their strange sanctuary life began to unfold.